Old Brewery Theatre
Summer Stock 1954-1972


The "Old Brewery Theatre " was a summer stock playhouse on West Main St., housed in what was once the Capital Brewery, pictured above in operation during the 1890s. Parts of the Capital Brewery building dated back to 1865, when it was the Helena Brewery. It became the Capital Brewery in 1885, and was expanded over the decades. The building was demolished in 1972.


The Last Chancer Tour Train at the Old Brewery Theatre, 1956


Walter and Doris Marshall, 1970s


FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY "I'VE MET THEM ALL" BY WALTER H. MARSHALL - NOW OUT OF PRINT

The Old Brewery Theatre was operated from 1954 -1972 by Helena promoter and politico Walter H. Marshall (1921-1986) and his wife Doris Marsolias Marshall (1903-1994), who taught dramatics at Helena Senior High School, 1947-1968

The Marshalls came to Helena via New York City in 1947. By 1948, Doris was producing and directing Helena High School plays, plus melodramas by the community theater group "The Pan Handler Players" at the Green Meadow Country Club and the Marlow Theatre.

The Marshalls began producing plays at John Quigley's Frontier Town atop McDonald Pass in 1951. In 1953, "Helena, Unlimited" - a not-for-profit organization spearheaded by past Chamber of Commerce President H. S. "Hi" Dotson - purchased the run-down Capital Brewery building on South Main with the intention of converting it into a summer playhouse. Using volunteer labor, the Marshalls oversaw the cleanup and renovation of the Brewery, and produced several plays there in 1954. They also continued to produce shows at Frontier Town in '54, but in 1955 they began focusing solely on the Old Brewery Theatre.



Opening Night Patrons at the Old Brewery Theatre - June 15 1954


FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY "I'VE MET THEM ALL" BY WALTER H. MARSHALL - NOW OUT OF PRINT




The Old Brewery Theatre, June 24 1957


PHOTO BY JEAN O'BLENIS • COLLECTION OF KENNON BAIRD


The Old Brewery Theatre, June 24 1957 (detail).

 

 

Gary Cooper at the Old Brewery Theatre, 1960


FROM "GARY COOPER'S LAST VISIT HOME", LOOK MAGAZINE, JULY 18 1961
COLLECTION OF KENNON BAIRD

Film Star Gary Cooper (1901-1961), a Helena native, greets young fan Yvonne Slead at the old Brewery Theatre (in background), 1960. It was Cooper's last trip to Helena.

 


Walter Marshall & Theatre Poster


FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY "I'VE MET THEM ALL" BY WALTER H. MARSHALL - NOW OUT OF PRINT

Walter Marshall, with ever-present cigar, holding an Old Brewery Theatre Poster, about 1968.



Old Brewery Theatre, 1960s

The Old Brewery Theatre was producing "Oklahoma!" when this 1960s photo was taken.

 

 

Walter Marshall Drinking Beer in the Prop Room, 1968


FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY "I'VE MET THEM ALL" BY WALTER H. MARSHALL - NOW OUT OF PRINT



1972 Interior Photos of the Old Brewery Theatre
Courtesy of Bob Clarkson, Clarkson Studio, Helena

Lobby

 

Lobby



The stage, set for "Butterflies Are Free", the theatre's final production.

 

 

The Old Pipe Organ



"The Dungeon", where liquid refreshments were served.



The stairs leading up to Walter Marshall's office.

Thanks, Bob, for sharing these memorable images!
In his 1980s autobiography "I've Met Them All" (Falcon Press), Walter Marshall had this to say about the financial side of the operation:

"The Old Brewery Theater, also a part of Helena Unlimited from '54 through 1962, was a combined operation, with the [Last Chancer Tour] train making money every year and, of course, the theater losing money every year. Helena Unlimited would help a little bit, but the Marshalls paid most of the bills.

There were no funds for this theater. Even though the Internal Revenue Service didn't believe this, it cost us over $85,000 during the 19 years of our work, and we paid for all of it. We borrowed the money from the First National Bank & Trust Company, cashed our insurance policies and took loans on insurance policies to keep the theater going. No one said we had to do it, but we did it. We proved to them [the IRS] beyond a shadow of a doubt, our financial losses, but this is where sometimes federal government just gets out of line and stays out of line... None of our time for 20 years nor thousands of dollars worth of notes would the IRS allow. After about a five year battle with the IRS, it cost us over $10,000. I feel very strongly about this -- I know we were right."


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